Secret levy revealed
Newcastle Greens
6 November 2006
FOI uncovers secret State Govt parking levy
Documents obtained under Freedom of Information reveal that the State Government is preparing a proposal to introduce a $450 parking space levy in the Newcastle CBD.
“At a time when the Sydney-appointed Labor candidate has begun attacking Newcastle Council over parking in the CBD, it has been revealed that the Sydney Labor Government has been secretly preparing a proposal to introduce a parking levy of $450 per space per year,” the Greens candidate for the state seat of Newcastle, Cr Michael Osborne, said today.
“The documents obtained under FOI relate to a consultancy by firm McCormack, Rankin, Cagney to develop a Lower Hunter Integrated Transport Plan. They are dated March 2005 and show that the Ministry of Transport was preparing a ‘proposal regarding the introduction of a (Category 2) Parking Space Levy (PSL) in the Newcastle CBD’.
“The Sydney Labor Government needs to come clean about whether they are going to impose this secret tax or not. And the Sydney-appointed Labor candidate for Newcastle should be honest with the electorate about whether she agrees with this additional impost on Newcastle people.
“If she doesn’t agree, what is she going to do about it?
“Have her Sydney minders told her about this secret tax? And when is it going to be announced to the Newcastle people – after the State election?” Cr Osborne asked.
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Parking Levy information from Ministry of Transport website
Parking space levies were originally introduced in the Sydney CBD and North Sydney/Milsons Point. In June 2000, the areas were extended to Bondi Junction, Chatswood, Parramatta and St Leonards. Each of these areas are referred to as Category 2 areas, while Sydney CBD and North Sydney/Milsons Point are referred to as Category 1 areas.
The rate of levy per space per year in Category 2 areas is set at $450, while the rate of levy per space in Category 1 areas is $900. In accordance with the Act these levies are increased each year with CPI (Sydney). Fees are collected by the NSW Office of State Revenue (OSR), a branch of the NSW State Treasury, on behalf of the NSW Ministry of Transport. An owner of off-street parking spaces within one of the six designated PSL areas must register with OSR, and make PSL payments to OSR on the basis of their liability.
Refer Ministry of Transport
